Bentley EXP 9 F SUV Concept

EXP stands for "experimental," not "explain, please."

JUSTIN BERKOWITZ

Mar 5, 2012

TIM ANDREW, THE MANUFACTURER

TIM ANDREW, THE MANUFACTURER

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Be honest: When you heard Bentley was planning an SUV, you thought it would look like a Continental GT on stilts. The actual thing, previewed by this EXP 9 F, will be more like Iron Man’s Mulsanne. The concept vehicle debuting at the Geneva show is a concept in name only, and the sheetmetal shouldn’t change much in production. It will, of course, get a real name.

It Certainly Has Presence

Some will like the Mulsanne-inspired headlights on the EXP 9 F, the warp drives beneath them, and the blocky rear haunches. (The “warp drives” actually are turbine-inspired air intakes encircled by daytime running lights.) Members of that camp will be outnumbered by those who find this concept vulgar and baroque, and who pick apart derivative styling that borrows from the Audi Q7 and the Range Rover Sport, among others.

We think the interior’s styling will be more widely appreciated, even if it is a bit heavy-handed. A rainforest’s worth of wood lines most of the door and dash tops, with everything else draped in leather and trimmed with chrome and aluminum. The exposed “linkage” for the automatic transmission’s gear selector is an especially nice touch. For those who might take their Bentley SUV to the world’s most luxurious campground, a full picnic set has been wedged into the rear compartment. It underscores Bentley’s effort to portray this as a proper Old World Bentley with British heritage, despite it being a German-engineered piece. Note the organ pulls for the vents and the quilted leather, which contrast with the fully modern TFT gauge-cluster screen, touch-sensitive center-stack controls, and motorized widescreen infotainment display. It has internet connectivity, too, and rear-seat passengers get power-reclining seats, power footrests, and a cooled compartment for booze.

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Powertrain Undecided

Since the EXP 9 F is being presented as a concept, Bentley says the powertrain portfolio hasn’t yet been determined. The show car has the company’s twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter W-12 and an eight-speed automatic; Bentley says the engine “could” produce 600 hp. It’s the same engine used in the Continental range. Bentley claims that such a powertrain would “set new benchmarks for the SUV sector” in terms of 0-to-60-mph acceleration and top speed. To do that, Bentley’s SUV would have to top the 500-hp Porsche Cayenne Turbo, a corporate cousin that sprints to 60 in 4.0 seconds flat and reaches 172 mph.

A production EXP 9 F likely will share its architectural basis with the next-gen Audi Q7, but alterations will leave the Bentley SUV with the same relationship to the Q7 as the Continental Flying Spur has to the Audi A8 and Volkswagen Phaeton. Still, the Bentley SUV should retain some of its platform’s off-road abilities, enabling Dubai dune bashing and Palm Springs curb-hopping. One would want to be careful not to damage the 23-inch rims, should they carry over from the EXP 9 F.

The official line from Bentley is that the EXP 9 F has been built to gauge customer reaction before any production decision is made. We doubt 15 minutes will pass after the SUV rolls onto the show stand before calls start coming in to place orders. Like the saying goes, “Haters gonna hate."